The four of them came together in the music club of their university in 1996; for Gotoh, Kita, and Yamada, ASIAN KUNG-FU GENERATION was the first band they ever formed.
After a while, they began to perform at the school and in the local Yokohama area. Interestingly, their first songs were all written in English and, in fact, their first independent 6 track album (released in 2000) was entirely sung in English. The CDs were sold at concerts and over the internet.
In 2001, beginning with "YMD" they held many self-planned events at Yokohama's CLUB24.
Once "Konayuki," the first song in which they used Japanese lyrics, was completed, they sent copies to all the independent shows on the FM stations, and were consequently able to get their music played for the first time on FM radio.
After that, they released their second CD of original works, this time using Japanese lyrics. It achieved great success within the region and at all the Live Houses.
From this time on, starting at Shibuya, Shimokitazawa, Kichijouji and other places, they started putting on shows famed for their energy.
In 2002, they submitted a track to the Underflow Records Compilation CD. In November of the same year, they released "Houkai Amplifier," their first Mini Album to be produced professionally. This album, which would decide their future, debuted in the number 1 spot of Highline Records weekly charts, and also made it to the number 35 spot in the Oricon Indies Chart.
On April 4, 2003, "Houkai Amplifier" was re-released under Ki/oon Records. That summer, they appeared at FUJI ROCK (on the "ROOKIE A GO GO" stage), and at SUMMER SONIC '03 in Osaka.
Following their October 16, 2003 single "Kimi to Iu Hana," their first full album "Kimi Tsunagi Five M" was released on November 19.
From January 19 to February 25 2004, they went on the "five nano seconds" tour. All shows immediately sold out and were a massive success.
In 2004, their first proper single "Siren" and their second single, the iconic "Loop & Loop," were released, the former on April 14th and the latter on May 19th.
Their self-planned event ASIAN KUNG-FU GENERATION presents "NANO-MUGEN FEST" took place on July 1st at Nihon Budoukan and, that summer, they appeared live at festivals in areas all over the country. On August 4th, their new single "Rewrite" was released, followed by "Kimi no Machi Made" on September 23rd.
On October 20, 2004, their long-awaited new album "Sol-fa" was released and this really pushed the band to the forefront of the J-Rock scene. Then, on November 2nd, they started their second national tour: ASIAN KUNG-FU GENERATION Tour Suihai No!
June 8 2005 saw the release of "NANO-MUGEN COMPILATION," an album composed of songs from various acts, both Japanese and English-language alike. Included was their first single after "Sol-fa": "Blackout." Later, the band released their first real single in over a year; "Blue Train."
In 2006, the band released another single "World Apart," followed by their third album, "Fanclub." A month later, they released their latest album "Feedback File," which includes live versions of some of their most popular tracks.
Their song "Haruka Kanata" was chosen to be a theme song for the anime series "Naruto," and the popular single "Rewrite" was selected as a theme song to the hit anime series "Fullmetal Alchemist." The song "Aru Machi no Gunjou" was used in the animated movie "Tekkon Kinkreet," and the song "After Dark" was used as a theme song for the animated series "BLEACH." The song "Maigo Inu to Ame no Beat" was used as the opening theme for the anime "The Tatami Galaxy".
フラッシュバック
ASIAN KUNG-FU GENERATION Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
窪んだカギ穴で絡まって
解き放つ瞬間僕を刺す
最終的に砕け散って３年前そう限界なんだ
腐ったトゲヌキで抜きとって
解き放つ瞬間僕を刺す
摂氏零度
浮かんで走ったあの日の影
旋風吹け
醜い過去から消し去って
強く願うそれ
あの日の未来がフラッシュバック
旋風吹け
醜い僕だけ消し去って
強く願うそれ
あの日の未来がフラッシュバック
旋風吹け
醜い過去から消し去って
強く願うそれ
あの日の未来がフラッシュバック
The lyrics of ASIAN KUNG-FU GENERATION's song フラッシュバック express the idea of being trapped in the past and wanting to break free. The first verse describes a moment of intense pain when something is released after being trapped for three minutes inside a cell membrane. The singer feels that same pain when trying to release something that has been trapped inside of them for three years. It feels like they are using a rusted tool to pull out a thorn, but the moment of release is just as sharp and painful.
The chorus mentions a tornado that can erase the ugliness of the past and bring back the future. The singer wishes to erase their own ugliness so that they can have a brighter future. The repetition of the phrase "あの日の未来がフラッシュバック" (the future of that day flashes back) at the end of each verse emphasizes the idea of wanting to return to a moment in the past that was full of hope and possibility.
Overall, the lyrics convey a desire to let go of the past and move forward to a brighter future, but the pain of letting go can be just as intense as the pain of holding on.
Line by Line Meaning
細胞膜に包まって３分間で４０倍
Wrapped up in cell membranes, multiplied forty times in three minutes
窪んだカギ穴で絡まって
Entangled in the sunken keyhole
解き放つ瞬間僕を刺す
The moment it's released stabs me
最終的に砕け散って３年前そう限界なんだ
Eventually shattered three years ago, yeah, it's the limit
腐ったトゲヌキで抜きとって
Pulled out with a rotten thorn
解き放つ瞬間僕を刺す
The moment it's released stabs me
それ超伝導
That's superconductive
摂氏零度
Zero degrees Celsius
浮かんで走ったあの日の影
The shadow of the day we floated and ran
旋風吹け
A whirlwind blows
醜い過去から消し去って
Erasing the ugly past
強く願うそれ
I strongly desire it
あの日の未来がフラッシュバック
A flashback to that day's future
旋風吹け
A whirlwind blows
醜い僕だけ消し去って
Erasing only my own ugliness
強く願うそれ
I strongly desire it
あの日の未来がフラッシュバック
A flashback to that day's future
旋風吹け
A whirlwind blows
醜い過去から消し去って
Erasing the ugly past
強く願うそれ
I strongly desire it
あの日の未来がフラッシュバック
A flashback to that day's future
Contributed by Isaiah O. Suggest a correction in the comments below.